One of the biggest themes of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers offseason was bringing back key players to make a serious run at a Super Bowl. Through two weeks that looks like a winning strategy, as Baker Mayfield is playing at an elite level and the Bucs are hot off a statement victory in Week 2 over the Detroit Lions.
Tampa Bay spent top dollar to bring back Antoine Winfield Jr., Mike Evans, and Tristan Wirfs on fat new contracts, while re-signing Lavonte David and Chase McLaughlin and reuiniting with Jordan Whitehead.
The vibes have remained immaculate since March, but not everyone was brought back. Notably, former All-Pro linebacker Devin White was allowed to walk in free agency, a decision that everyone but the Buccaneers seems to regret.
White signed a one-year deal with the Philadelphia Eagles and promptly dumped a heap of trash talk on his former team. He trolled the Bucs in his introductory press conference, kept talking about them in interviews throughout the offseason, and was still taking shots during the preseason.
Unfortunately, that seems to be where the Devin White Era in Philly peaked, as two weeks into the season, he's been nothing more than a rumor in the team's lineup.
Devin White is already being pushed to the brink of the Eagles' roster
White missed the Eagles first game of the season, and is once again out for a second straight week. This time around, though, he's a healthy inactive, which seems to suggest that his time with the Eagles might be over before it truly begins.
This is, unfortunately, familiar territory for White.
He was famously ruled a healthy inactive back in Week 15 last season for the Bucs game up in Green Bay. That whole situation caused a bit of a controversy thanks to the team's clumsy explanation for why he was inactive but the writing had already been on the wall for weeks.
White demanded a trade last offseason when he wasn't being given the $100 million contract he thought he was owed. He eventually rescinded the request, but the damage was already done. Rather than step up and earn his money, White played so poorly that he was eventually replaced in the starting lineup by K.J. Britt.
It's a pretty depressing fall from grace for a guy who once looked poised to be an important part of Tampa Bay's future. He was drafted to become the successor to Lavonte David as the leader of the defense, but for whatever reason his development stalled.
He helped the Bucs win a Super Bowl, which fans will forever be grateful for. Everything that happened after soured his legacy, though, and it seems not much has changed since leaving Tampa Bay behind.
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